Define dissertation prospectus

13. Include a title on your proposal. I'm amazed at how often the title is left for the end of the student's writing and then somehow forgotten when the proposal is prepared for the committee. A good proposal has a good title and it is the first thing to help the reader begin to understand the nature of your work. Use it wisely! Work on your title early in the process and revisit it often. It's easy for a reader to identify those proposals where the title has been focused upon by the student. Preparing a good title means:

...having the most important words appear toward the beginning of your title,

...limiting the use of ambiguous or confusing words,

..breaking your title up into a title and subtitle when you have too many words, and

...including key words that will help researchers in the future find your work.

14. It's important that your research proposal be organized around a
set of questions that will guide your research. When selecting these guiding
questions try to write them so that they frame your research and put it
into perspective with other research. These questions must serve to establish
the link between your research and other research that has preceded you.
Your research questions should clearly show the relationship of your research
to your field of study. Don't be carried away at this point and make your
questions too narrow. You must start with broad relational questions.